This was to be Avalanche goalie Peter Budaj’s chance to take the next step — asserting himself as an unquestioned standout No. 1 for an entire season . . . and beyond.

By any standard of judgment, whether statistical or eyeball, Budaj has failed to do that this season.

“I definitely haven’t taken advantage of that chance,” Budaj said Tuesday after the Avalanche’s practice at the Family Sports Center. “The organization has been great. They stood behind me for the entire year. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to get it done the way I wanted, and I’m pretty sure not the way they wanted.

“It’s a team sport and the entire team is not playing great right now, starting with me. I’m not happy about that, but it’s a learning process, and I have to learn from it.”

With the Avalanche mired in a seven-game losing streak and vying for the worst record in the NHL heading into tonight’s home game against Phoenix, the 26-year-old is facing an uncertain future. His contract expires after this season, and his play won’t have anyone — in Colorado or elsewhere — knocking down his door, although his 2008-09 salary of “only” $800,000 doesn’t set a daunting benchmark.

In 52 games, Budaj has a 3.02 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage. Going into Tuesday’s games, the save percentage put him 40th among the 45 NHL goalies on pace to play at least one-third of their teams’ games, and the four behind him were Toronto’s Vesa Toskala, Avalanche teammate Andrew Raycroft, St. Louis’ demoted Manny Legace, Detroit’s Chris Osgood and Atlanta’s Johan Hedberg.

Budaj’s goals-against average is 37th among those 45 players, with Raycroft in at 43rd.

Budaj has played well in streaks, frequently been the victim of shoddy work in front of him, and at times has taken more blame than deserved for the Avalanche’s struggles. But Colorado needed better goaltending to even get within shouting distance of a playoff spot.

“I’m disappointed with the year because I thought I prepared well and did everything I could to prepare in the offseason, and I’ve worked hard in practice,” Budaj said. “I tried to prove it on the ice, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to get it done. I wouldn’t say I’m down on myself as much as I’d definitely say it was a disappointing year, not just for me, but for the entire organization. We have to finish up strong, finish the best we can, have some pride and go from there.”

He said his contract situation “is out of my hands. I didn’t help my cause with this year, but it’s totally up to the guys upstairs. I’d like to say I wasn’t thinking about it, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t. I love this organization, and I’d love to stay here.”

The issue becomes whether his play the past three seasons — when he was 61-36-16 with a goals-against of 2.70, and when he was terrific down the stretch of the 2006-07 season — will sway anyone to give him another opportunity.

At this point, his best scenario seems to be a team in need of a backup signing him, but his chances of parlaying the opportunity this season into a hefty raise are minuscule.

Avalanche coach Tony Granato conceded that Budaj hasn’t taken advantage of his chance this season, but added: “Is he still going to be a good goalie in this league, at this level? Yes. No doubt about it.”

Granato added, “If you look at a lot of elite goaltenders in our league right now, they faced situations and years like this as well. (Boston’s) Tim Thomas, for example, who’s having an MVP year. Hopefully, what Peter’s learned from this year will help him in the future.”

Phoenix at Colorado

7 p.m. tonight, ALT, KCKK 1510 AM/KRCN 1060 AM

Coyotes center Kyle Turris: One of
the poster boys for the downside of
leaving college too soon, Turris
signed after his freshman season at
Wisconsin and has struggled in his
rookie season. He has eight goals
and 20 points.

Coyotes notes: Phoenix is coming off a 6-5 overtime victory at home against Dallas on Monday night. . . . The Coyotes have been 8-18-2 since the all-star break, falling out of contention for a playoff spot. . . . Ilya Bryzgalov has played 15 of the past 17 games in the Coyotes’ net.

Avalanche notes: Defenseman Brett Clark didn’t practice Tuesday because of a hand injury and coach Tony Granato said he would be out indefinitely. . . . The Avs recalled defenseman Ray Macias from Lake Erie, and if he plays against the Coyotes, he will be the ninth player to make his NHL debut for the Avs this season. Colorado has recalled four defensemen from the AHL in the past two weeks because of injuries. . . . Wojtek Wolski, who has missed the past two games because of illness, won’t play against the Coyotes, and Granato said he would undergo further testing “to find out what’s going on there.” . . . Joe Sakic again was on the ice for the first part of practice and didn’t participate in any contact work. “He’s still working hard in the gym, and he’s still in the right frame of mind to still make a return,” Granato said.

After watching Air Force kick the CU Buffaloes’ tail, not to mention their undefeated record, into the wild, blue yonder, here’s a legitimate question: How in the world is the Pac-12 recognized as a Power Five football conference?